​Board of Trustees Elects Officers for 2015

(Santa Ana, CA)—On Monday, December 8, at a regularly scheduled meeting of the Rancho Santiago Community College District Board of Trustees, three re-elected trustees were sworn in to serve four-year terms.

John R. Hanna, an attorney who serves as government affairs director/special counsel, for the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, was sworn in by Orange County Superior Court Judge Erick L. Larsh. Hanna, a resident of Orange, was appointed to the board in January 1998 and has served as an elected member representing Trustee Area 2 for the past 16 years.  He is a member of the Board Policy Committee, the Board Legislative Committee, and the Board Safety and Security Committee. He also represents the board on the Orange County School Boards Association.

Hanna is active in civic and community affairs. He is currently a member of the Community College League of California Advisory Committee on Legislation and serves on the board for the Community Foundation of Orange. Most recently, he was appointed to the Metropolitan Water District’s Blue Ribbon Committee to help the region meet its long-term water needs.

Lawrence R. “Larry” Labrado, was sworn in by Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez, representing California’s 46th Congressional District. Labrado was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board in January 1994 and elected to represent Trustee Area 4 (formerly District 3) in November 1994. A former educator with over 22 years of experience in enrollment management, he served as an outreach director at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) prior to his retirement.  He currently owns L & S Tax Service, a tax return preparation service located in Orange. As the current president of the Board of Trustees, he serves as an alternate on the Board Facilities Committee, the Board Fiscal/Audit Committee, the Board Legislative Committee, the Board Policy Committee, and the Board Safety and Security Committee.

Labrado is devoted to advancing the education of local youth and Latino children and adults and has served in countless leadership roles over the past four decades and has earned numerous awards. He was recently inducted into the CSUF Educational Opportunity Program Hall of Fame. He currently serves as member of the American GI Forum and a director of the American GI Educational Foundation.  In the past, he has served on the Leadership Advisory Committee for the Orange Chamber of Commerce and the LULAC Education Foundation and the Friendly Center.

Phillip E. Yarbrough was sworn in by Assembly Member Donald P. “Don” Wagner, 68th Assembly District. Yarbrough was elected to the board in 1996 and is in his fifth term as an elected member representing Trustee Area 6 (formerly District 3). Prior to becoming a trustee, Yarbrough taught economics courses part-time at both of the district’s colleges, Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College. He is currently the owner of Nations Financial Mortgage Corporation, and Pacific Estates & Investments, real estate investment and management companies. Yarbrough chairs the Board Fiscal/Audit Committee and is a member of the Board Legislative Committee and the Board Safety and Security Committee. He also represents the California Community Colleges by serving as a board member on the County of Orange Redevelopment Oversight Agency.

Dedicated to improving the quality of life in Orange County, Yarbrough previously served as an executive board member with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and served on the board of the Orange County Chapter of the American Lung Association.  He also served as Orange County coordinator for The Concord Coalition, a non-profit federal deficit reduction organization dedicated to eliminating federal deficit spending and balancing the federal budget. He is is a former lay minister at St. James Church in Newport Beach, where he ministered to the elderly and the homeless.

Community dignitaries who attended the swearing in ceremony included Trustee Sunny Zia, Area 3, Long Beach Community College District; Councilmember Sergio Contreras, City of Westminster; and Bill Cheney, president, SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union. The Reverend Monsignor Douglas Cook of Holy Family Cathedral offered an invocation and Pastor Jeff Dietz of Harvest Ministries in Riverside gave a closing prayer.

At this annual board organization meeting, new board officers for 2015 were selected, trustees were also appointed to committees and organizations, and 2015 meeting dates were adopted.

Lawrence R. “Larry” Labrado, representing Trustee Area 4, was selected as board president. Claudia C. Alvarez, representing Trustee Area 5, was chosen as board vice president. John Hanna, representing Trustee Area 2, was elected as clerk of the board.

“It’s a privilege to be selected as president of the Rancho Santiago Community College District Board of Trustees,” said Labrado. “For me, higher education has always been a priority and community colleges make education accessible to all. We welcome a wide range of students, but all come with a dream of becoming successful in their chosen endeavors. Individuals with modest economic means can come to our colleges and earn a certificate or degree that will open the door to greater opportunity. Our students look to the district and its Board of Trustees to provide the support, the facilities, the programs, and the faculty and staff, to help them succeed. My goal as board president is to strive to keep Rancho Santiago Community College District, Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College moving ahead to meet current and future community needs. The Board of Trustees will also work to balance our budgets, to seek funding sources beyond state apportionment, to eliminate excessive regulations on community colleges, and to streamline the approval process for constructing educational facilities on our campuses.”

Alvarez, a resident of Santa Ana for more than 30 years who was elected to the RSCCD Board of Trustees in 2012, attended local public schools including Fremont Elementary, Spurgeon Jr. High, and Santiago High School.  While taking her core courses at Santa Ana College concurrently, she earned a B.A. from California State University, Fullerton, majoring in criminal justice with a minor in political science. She earned her law degree from Loyola Law School and was admitted to the California State Bar in 1994. She has served as a deputy district attorney for the County of Orange for more than 15 years and has been active in many community organizations. She has served as a mentor for the Puente and Hermanita Mentor Program, president of the Hispanic Bar Association, vice president of KinderCaminata, president of MANA, and as a board member of the Community Services Programs. She served as a Santa Ana City Council member from 2000 until she termed out in November 2012.

For more information about the RSCCD Board of Trustees, visit www.rsccd.edu/trustees.

About Rancho Santiago Community College District
Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College are public community colleges of the Rancho Santiago Community College District, which serves the residents of Anaheim Hills, Orange, Santa Ana, Villa Park, and portions of Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, and Tustin.. Both colleges provide education for academic transfer and careers, courses for personal and professional development, and customized training for business and industry.